“David Cameron’s meeting with King Hamad Al-Khalifa today is an opportunity for the Prime Minister to make it clear that Bahrain still has lot to do to repair the damage of its crackdown on the protests this year. There should be no death sentences and no ‘revenge’ convictions. Bahrain’s human rights record is still heavily tarnished.”

As Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa visited the UK, Amnesty International issued the following summary of its human rights concerns on the country.

Beirut, December 12, 2011 – On Sunday, December 11, 2011, the Supreme Court of Appeal held its first hearing to consider prison sentences issued by a military tribunal against two human rights defenders. On September 25, the Court of National Security has sentenced Mr. Mahdi Abu Deeb, President of the Teachers Association of Bahrain to 10 years in prison. His deputy, Mrs. Jalila Al-Salman, was sentenced to 3 years in prison. According to Bahraini law, both Abu Deeb and Salman should be tried in a civil court, not a military tribunal.

Beirut, 12 December, 2011 — The Gulf Centre for Human Rights and the Bahrain Center for Human Rights express their deep concern regarding the ongoing threats and harassment of some human rights defenders in Bahrain. They are: Ms. Lamis Dhaif, journalist and human rights defender, Mr. Nabeel Rajab, director of the Bahrain center for human rights, Mr. Mohammed Al-Maskati, president of the Bahrain youth society for human rights, Mr.Yousef Al-Mahafdha, the monitoring and follow-up officer at the Bahrain center for human rights, Mr. Yousef Abdulrasool, member the board of directors of the Bahrain youth society for human rights, and Mr. Ahmed Abbas, member of the Bahrain youth society for human rights.

Infant Sajida Faisal died in her home on Sunday 11 Dec 2011 as a result of inhalation of tear gas fired by riot police.

Her father told BCHR the village has been tear gassed for three days (Wed to Fri) and it was very heavy on Friday night, the whole village was covered in tear gas. His other daughter Sarah (3 years old) also suffocated from tear gas and her mother couldn’t do anythin but put pepsi on her face.

A Military court initially sentenced Fadhila Al Mubarak in absence of legal defense

Despite all published information that confirmed arrests happened on back of exercise of legitimate rights to express opinion, no action taken to release prisoners of conscience

10 Dec 2011

Fadhila Al Mubarak, a 38 year old mother of a 9 year old, is still in jail after she was sentenced in an unfair military trial of charges related directly to exercising her right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. She was detained and prosecuted at military court for playing revolutionary music in her car, trying to save her son and nieces, participating in peaceful protests in Pearl Roundabout and writing a poem to her son about the revolution, freedom and fighting for his future. The available information on the conditions of her detention is very worrying and her family has raised concerns over her health.

On 09 Dec 2011, New York Times columnist Nick Kristof was detained by police while covering a protest in Bahrain on Friday. Kristof and his videographer, Adam Ellick, were held in two separate police cars as tear gas was fired on protesters. The two journalists were also tear gassed. The camera man Adam was roughly handled. His camera damaged.

[Washington, December 3, 2011] – The Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) awarded its 2011 academic freedom prize:

“To all faculty, students and staff of Bahraini institutions of higher education who, by speaking out, documenting abuses, and engaging in myriad other forms of resistance have struggled against a range of brutal assaults by the Bahraini government upon academic freedom and upon the autonomy and integrity of the country’s educational institutions”

The year 2011 will be remembered as one of immense political and social change around the world, particularly the Middle East. On this International Human Rights Day, Freedom House looks back at a few of the best and worst developments of the year with respect to their long-term implications for the global state of human rights.

The international community’s abandonment of Bahrain:

Despite the concerted international action to protect peaceful protesters in other parts of the Arab world, there have been no UN resolutions or sanctions on Bahrain , where protesters’ calls for political reform have been met with excessive force, torture, extrajudicial killings

Education International (EI) has launched a new Urgent Action Appeal on Bahrain, calling on its member organisations to contact their national government as well as the Bahraini diplomatic representations in their country to urge the Bahraini authorities to review the charges and convictions and commute sentences of all teachers, teacher unionists and students charged with offences related to exercise of freedom of speech and right to assemble.